Disillusioned
by greyrondo
Summary: Mia may be gone, but The World isn't. And Haseo has something to ask of Endrance, if Endrance will accept. One-shot, themes of HaseoxEndrance.


Disclaimer: I don't own .hack. But everything not associated with .hack (original plot, etc.) does belong to me.

I found this lurking amongst my old files today after I got curious and clicked on a file I usually never visit (it's right next to Fair Dawn, so that would explain a lot). It's a short and sweet little one-shot I wrote from Endrance's point of view after Haseo defeated him at the end of .hack//GU: Rebirth. Please enjoy and review!

**Disillusioned**

Mia was gone.

Haseo had stolen her away from him. Of course he could say that Mia was evil, Mia was really AIDA and Haseo was only 'saving him'. Endrance knew this to be true. But while Haseo had so many others, Endrance only had that false Mia.

It seemed too much to bear, for Haseo to take away all that Endrance had, and then dare to disturb his perfect solitude and ask him for his aid.

"I need your help, Endrance. I'm saying it because it's true. But I'm not going to wait around for you forever. I need your help, but I'm not the only one who needs help here. Thing is, I'm willing to go out and seek it. What about you?"

Something in the force of Haseo's voice said that even though he threatened to leave, he would not abandon Endrance's prison until Endrance relinquished his perfect crystal world.

But why, Endrance wanted to know. There was no true reason for him to leave this place. Outside the crystal was only an ugly world that would eagerly anticipate sinking its blades into the fallen Emperor's ego, or likely even his avatar. Until Haseo could promise defense against that, then there was no reason to rejoin The World.

The question of whether he wanted Haseo to even attempt to promise Endrance that was left unanswered. Even Haseo admitted that he entreated Endrance only to fulfill a purpose; what was Endrance to do after his goal had been accomplished?

It was simply too risky to take the chance. Offline, Endrance muted his volume and simply ignored the insistent text that ran along the bottom of his screen.

That night, Kaoru Ichinose awoke with a start. Pale sweat clung to him like the image that would not leave his head. Suddenly, he felt stifled, trapped in his own, familiar bedroom. Everything felt too close.

With trembling hands, he shrugged off the washed-out grey shirt he had worn to sleep. He had only to close his eyes to remember the dream. He was logged in—like in so many of his dreams—but it was Haseo who had followed him this time.

Haseo's breath sighed against his chest, Haseo's hands wrapped around him like a lover. The image terrified him. But… it would not leave. And the more he recalled it, the more he realized that he wasn't afraid of it after all.

He liked the thought of loving Haseo. No, he told himself as his cheeks flushed, as the surging feeling overtook him suddenly like wildfire. He loved it.

Compulsively, Kaoru found himself at his feet, scrambling for his desk chair and headset and the power switch for his PC all in the space of seconds. His fingers tripped over themselves on the keyboard as he logged in.

But Haseo was gone.

He had really meant it. He wouldn't wait for Endrance forever.

Standing alone on the shore, on the far side of the fairy tree, Endrance smiled bitterly as he bowed his head. Could player characters be made to cry, he wondered.

Only then did he realize what he had done. The World was not perfect, it was not beautiful, not when seen through eyes that were closer to the truth. But a world for what it was, was far better than ignoring the reality staring him in the face.

Mia was gone. She died with R:1. The power he wielded was her last gift to him. And like she gave herself, in the end, to protect The World, Endrance knew that Mia's memory deserved nothing less than for him to do the same.

But if he chose a particular aspect of The World to protect more carefully than the rest, then there was nothing wrong with that. There was a reason that Mia's true form was called the Temptress. Not because she was deceitful, but because she truly offered that which many found so desirable, so tempting, within The World. Friendship, care, love. Was that so hard to give?

No. Not at all.


End file.
